Privacy Legislation Enacted in 2011

Unless otherwise noted, all laws go into effect January 1, 2012

AB 22 (Mendoza) Employment: Credit Reports
This law prohibits the use of consumer credit reports for employment purposes, with exceptions: 1) when the information is substantially job-related and the applicant or promotion candidate would have access to money, other assets, or confidential information; and 2) when the position is managerial, or with the state Department of Justice, a sworn peace officer or other law enforcement position, or 3) when the credit report information is already required by law. Civil Code § 1785.20.5 and Labor Code § Part 2 of Division 2 Chapter 3.6 (commencing with § 1024.5)

AB 665 (Torres) Disorderly Conduct: Invasion of Privacy
This law amends existing law on the crime of disorderly conduct including looking through an opening into a bedroom, bathroom, dressing room or other interior space where the occupant has a reasonable expectation of privacy, with intent to invade privacy. This law makes a second or subsequent violation by a registered sex offender a felony. Penal Code § 647

AB 708 (Knight) Hidden Recordings: Statute of Limitations
This law sets a statute of limitations of one year from discovery for filing a criminal complaint about the prohibited use of concealed camcorders, motion pictures cameras, or cameras of any type to secretly videotape another, as specified. Penal Code § 803

AB 746 (Campos) Cyberbullying
This law expands the Education Code definition of bullying committed as an electronic act to include posting on a social network Internet Web site. Education Code § 32261

SB 24 (Simitian) Data Breach Notification
This law requires those subject to the data breach notification statute to meet certain additional requirements, including providing specific information in the notice and providing a sample copy of notices issued to more than 500 California residents to the Attorney General or other specified state agencies. It also provides that entities in compliance with the breach notice provisions of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act are deemed to have complied with the law's provisions. Civil Code §§ 1798.29 and 1798.82

SB 208 (Alquist) Identity Theft: Restitution
This law authorizes courts to award restitution for expenses of monitoring an identity theft victim's credit report and for the costs to repair the victim's credit for a period of time reasonably necessary to make the victim whole, as specified. This law declares that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute. Penal Code § 1202.4

SB 602 (Yee) Reader Privacy
This law enacts the Reader Privacy Act, which protects the privacy of individuals who use the services of businesses that rent, sell, lend or otherwise offer books to the public. It requires a search warrant, court order, or the user's affirmative consent before such a business can disclose the personal information of its users related to their use of a book, with specified exceptions, including an imminent danger of death or serious injury. Civil Code §§ Title 1.81.15 (commencing with §1798.90)

SB 636 (Corbett) Online Disclosure of Personal Information of Safe at Home Participants
This law provides participants in the Secretary of State's confidential address program, Safe at Home (for victims of domestic violence or stalking and reproductive health care providers, employees, and volunteers) with the right to demand the removal their personal information, including home address and phone number, from online search engines or databases, and imposes related obligations on the operators of such search engines and databases. Government Code §§ 6206.5, 6206.7, 6208, 6215.3, 6215.4, 6215.7, 6208.1, 6208.2, and 6218.01

SB 850 (Leno) Confidential Medical Records
This law requires an electronic health or medical record system to protect the integrity of electronic medical information and automatically record and preserve any change or deletion of electronically stored information. This law affirms the patient's right to access the information consistent with federal and state law. Civil Code § 56.101